Sales and earnings decline at Wiley

Sales and earnings have declined at Wiley, with second quarter results reporting revenue of $493m (£392m), down 4% from $515m (£410m) and operating income of $46m (£37m), down 19% from $57m (£45m).

Wiley said the decline was partly due to an increase in restructuring and related charges of $25.1m (£20m) up from $14.1m (£11m) a year ago. It also noted an increase in corporate expenses owing to higher executive severance costs.  

In the report Wiley highlighted the steps it is taking to create “a stronger, leaner, and more profitable company”, selling three no-core assets and reaching an agreement to sell its university services business to Academic Partnerships in a deal that could reach as much as $150m (£119m). 

The company has also begun a “rightsize and optimise” plan, which it expects will save $30m (£24m) this fiscal year. The company said the “restructuring actions” have already started, including the publisher’s consolidation of its marketing functions, and the restructuring of its global operations under one leader.

A Wiley spokesperson told The Bookseller that these changes "included a targeted reduction in roles" across the publisher’s global operations "to meet current business needs" and included 103 positions in New Jersey.

Matthew Kissner, interim president and c.e.o. since October after Brian Napack resigned, said: “Our second quarter and year-to-date overall performance was in line with our expectations as we execute on our value creation plan to make Wiley a stronger, leaner, and more profitable company focused on driving consistent growth in our core. We expect year-over-year revenue improvement in the second half and expect to exit the year with a stronger margin profile. Fiscal 2025 and 2026 is where we will realise the full benefits of our current actions.” 

Sales in Wiley’s Research unit fell 5%, to $258m (£205m), which the company said was mainly due to the "publishing pause" in its Hindawi unit undertaken after Wiley discovered "compromised" articles in several of its issues, as well as a softer recruiting market. Sales rose 7% in the Learning Group to $149m (£119m). Sales were up 8% in the academic division, led by higher digital courseware sales. Revenue in the professional division rose 4% helped by what Wiley said was an ”improved channel environment", fewer returns, and solid sales of its Dummies series.